ILOILO CITY, Sept. 8 (PNA) — A flood free Iloilo City by 2015 is the priority program of the Iloilo City government under the leadership of Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog.
Mabilog said his present administration is now working on its 2015 annual budget which focuses more on flood control program.
The mayor added that he is asking the cooperation of the public especially the barangay officials from 180 villages in the city to report to his office those identified sites which are considered flood-prone areas.
“Please help your city officials with areas or roads that are still under water when it rains (more than ankle deep) in the city of Iloilo. Please submit the street name and the name of the barangay,” his message read as posted on his Facebook account Jed Patrick E. Mabilog,
Mabilog admitted that some parts of the city are below sea level (sea water passes through drainages and canals) which means that no amount of drainage system can cure the flooding because that is a natural catchment area.
“In cases like these, the residents must adapt and be resilient to flooding”, he said.
For private subdivisions, Mabilog said the government is not allowed to use public funds for such purpose.
The mayor said all the reports he received will be validated by his team so that it will be included in the list of infrastructure projects for next year. (PNA)